Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer apologized Sunday after photos emerged that appeared to show her violating social distancing guidelines mandated as part of the state’s health order while at an East Lansing restaurant.
A photo circulated on social media of Whitmer with a large group of unmasked people at the Landshark Bar & Grill, Breitbart first reported.
The photo, which showed the Democratic governor seated with roughly a dozen people at tables that had been pushed together, was posted online by an attendee, but later deleted, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Restaurants and bars in the state are able to operate with capacity limits and social distancing requirements due to the ongoing CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic, as per a May 15 order from the state Department of Health and Human Services. Currently, a maximum of six people can be seated at a table, and tables must have a distance of six feet between them.
“Throughout the pandemic, I’ve been committed to following public health protocols,” Whitmer said in a statement to multiple news outlets Sunday. “Yesterday, I went with friends to a local restaurant. As more people arrived, the tables were pushed together. Because we were all vaccinated, we didn’t stop to think about it.”
“In retrospect, I should have thought about it. I am human. I made a mistake, and I apologize,” she added.
NTD has reached out to Whitmer for additional comment.
Whitmer, who received her second dose of COVID-19 vaccine on April 29, has said that she plans to tie the state’s reopening and lifting of restrictions to the rate at which residents get the COVID-19 vaccination jab.
